Regional Practitioners’ Workshop in Durrës, Albania – SCN in the Western Balkans

Last week, member cities from across Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia were joined by partner organisations, experts and multilaterals for the SCN Western Balkans Regional Practitioners’ Workshop in Durrës, Albania.

Hosted by SCN partners, the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), the workshop built on in-country training sessions in Kosovo, Albania and Montenegro earlier this year. In addition to the practitioner training, the event’s opening sessions also brought together key national figures and regional mayors, building cooperation across a membership of more than 40 cities region-wide.

Across two days, frontline practitioners discussed key regional trends, local challenges and the steps being taken across several member cities to prevent violent extremism and build cohesive, resilient communities. Key issues included returnees and reintegration (including from the perspective of former violent extremists), referral mechanisms, and working with families and young people.

The workshop included a core session on local action planning and risk assessments, identifying and categorising key risk dynamics in member cities. Participants then looked at how a comprehensive evidence base and methodology being developed as a joint framework between ISD and Creative Associates International can drive appropriate and targeted initiatives and form the basis of Local Action Plans. This work, first announced during the SCN International Steering Committee meeting in Aarhus, Denmark in May 2017, builds on expertise across the two organisations, from stability and resilience assessments to online threat analysis and local institutional vulnerability testing.

The next SCN Regional Practitioners’ Workshop is scheduled for January 2018 and is set to involve around 10 cities from across the South Asia region.

What We Do

Facilitate systematic sharing of knowledge, expertise and lessons learned on building social cohesion and community resilience to prevent violent extremism across cities on an international basis, through both regional workshops and international conferences.

Raise awareness of existing policy, programming, and practice through a dynamic and searchable ‘Online Information Hub’, providing an extensive library of existing local approaches and responses to prevent violent extremism.

Directly support cities to develop strategic frameworks and capabilities to build resilience that safeguard the rights of their local communities, including through capacity building seminars and interactive training modules on themes of mutual interest.

Directly seed the development of new and innovative projects through ‘Local Innovation Grants’, providing support for cities on innovative project development and support for the transfer of promising projects that could be adapted across different locations.

Directly support cities to develop strategic frameworks and capabilities to build resilience that safeguard the rights of their local communities, including through capacity building seminars and interactive training modules on themes of mutual interest.

Provide a global platform to enable cities to jointly voice their needs and those of their communities, to inform national and international decision-making on preventing the spread and growth of violent extremism.